


Say You're Sorry

by TheLadyZephyr



Category: Captain America (Movies), Marvel Cinematic Universe
Genre: Fix-It, Gen, M/M, One Shot, Post-Civil War
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-04-28
Updated: 2016-04-28
Packaged: 2018-06-05 01:36:27
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 936
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/6684073
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TheLadyZephyr/pseuds/TheLadyZephyr
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Steve Rodgers gave Tony Stark that phone in case of emergency. As usual, Tony doesn't do what he's expected to.</p>
<p>
  <i> Tony texts Steve after the events of Civil War. </i>
</p>
            </blockquote>





	Say You're Sorry

**Author's Note:**

> This work contains spoilers for Captain America Civil War

_**brr brr**_

Steve startled fully awake, giving his head a shake to clear it and straightening from his exhausted slump. The train car rattled beneath him, the rhythmic clatter drowning out any sound from the jungle outside, and the air was heavy and humid in the dark freight carriage. Nat glanced over to him from where she sat against the opposite wall, raising an eyebrow at him in silence. She flicked her eyes down to his hips and then back up again, the tiniest of smiles softening one side of her lips.

Belatedly Steve realised that the buzzing that had woken him had originated from his jeans pocket. He fumbled to slide out the old burner cell, fingers clumsy in his haste, and flicked open the screen.

_< I am deeply offended to be using this insult to modern technology.>_

The pixelated type gave off a faint green glow in the dimness, and for the first time in weeks Steve felt some of the tense muscles in his chest relax. He looked up grinning, and Nat returned his smile. A quick scan of their surroundings showed Wanda, Sam and Scott were still fast asleep. Clint met his eyes from his precarious perch on top of a couple of stacked packing crates, and inclined his head when Steve held up the phone.

_< Next time I’ll be sure to find a burner phone in gloss red,> _he typed, and hit send before he could second guess himself.

>>>>>>

SIX MONTHS LATER

Steve watched Sam idly fidgeting with his beer out of the corner of his eye, trying not to appear too focused on the tiny, grainy television on the other side of the dingy, crowded bar. He listed carefully to the news reporter, super soldier hearing filtering out the hum of conversation and the lazy clicking of the ceiling fans.

“Anything?” Sam asked, scanning the room while Steve watched the screen. His friend had a baseball cap pulled low over his face, the tension around his eyes the only fault in his relaxed pose.

Steve forced himself to take a token swig of his own beer. _We’re just a couple of mates out for a drink,_ he reminded himself, ducking his head forward to ensure his hood obscured his face.

“I think we’re good,” he murmured, and some of the tension went out of Sam’s eyes.

_**brr brr**_

Steve’s beer slipped from surprised fingers as he put it down on the table with a loud clunking noise that made Sam shoot him a wary look.

“It’s Tony!” Steve hissed, pulling out the cell, and Sam sat up in alarm.

_< I can’t believe this thing uses actual buttons.>_

Steve let out a shaky breath. No emergency.

“He’s fine,” he told Sam, “just… being Tony I guess.”

Sam held out a hand, and Steve passed him the phone. The Falcon snorted, eyebrows raised.

“We haven’t heard anything from him in half a year, and that’s what he sends?” he asked incredulously, handing the cell back to Steve. “I thought that phone was supposed to be an emergency contact?”

“Since when does Tony ever act the way he’s expected to?” Steve replied, hitting the reply button.

_< I am impressed you still remember how to use a phone with buttons.>_

To his surprise Tony sends a reply straight away; he hadn’t sent a single text since the one Steve received on the train out of Wakanda six months ago.

_< You do know that they make burner phones that aren’t bigger fossils than you, right cap?>_

He glanced at the neighbouring booths, checking they still hadn’t received any unwanted attention, and hesitated over a reply.

_< Sorry, I was a bit preoccupied at the time. Bucky’s gone to sleep again.>_

He hovered over the send button, deliberating. He was afraid that discussing Bucky would end the conversation, but the man deserved to know. 

“Steve, come on,” Sam said, getting to his feet, “We’ve been here too long.”

Steve hit send and closed the phone, slipping it back into his pocket as he stood and followed his friend out onto the crooked street. They took a meandering route back to the hotel room where Wanda was waiting for them. 

Once they’d relayed the results of their reconnaissance to Wanda and settled in for the night Steve pulled out the phone again.

Tony hadn’t replied.

>>>>>>

_< Managed to get my hands on some of the files from Siberia.>_

They were camped out on the outskirts of a desert, shielded from the harsh sunlight by a rocky outcropping. Wanda shifted from where she had been curled up atop a sleeping bag, looking at the phone in Steve’s hand with hopeful eyes.

“It is Tony?” she asked softly.

“Yeah,” he replied, heart rate picking up.

_< And?>_ he texted back.

_< And I saw the kind of things hydra did to these people.>_

Steve stared at the phone intently, trying to force his grip to slacken so he wouldn’t snap it. It took an agonising couple of minutes for Tony’s next text to come through.

_< So, when are you free for Shawarma?>_

Steve let out a startled laugh, and Wanda looked over at him curiously.

_< Tony.>_ he replied, _< Thank you.>_

He heard the familiar roar of Sam’s wings before the Falcon swooped in to land precisely in front of them. He swung a duffle bag off his shoulder and retracted his wings; he’d been out on a supply run.

“Stark contacted Steve again,” Wanda told him, and Sam’s teeth glinted as he grinned at Steve.

“What’d he say?” he asked, shucking off the machinery.

Steve smiled down at the phone.

“He said sorry.”

**Author's Note:**

> **Deep breaths** I just got home from seeing the film; my first thought was OH I CAN NOT WAIT UNTIL INFINITY WAR FOR THEM TO FIX THIS. So for my own sanity I threw together a little fix it fic - hope you enjoyed!
> 
> \- Zee
> 
> http://theladyzephyr.tumblr.com/


End file.
